1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a liquid discharging apparatus.
2. Related Art
In the related art, an ink jet type printer that records (prints) an image by discharging liquid droplets onto a recording medium from a liquid discharging head is known as an example of a liquid discharging apparatus.
A liquid discharging head includes a flow channel formation substrate in which a pressure generation chamber that accumulates a liquid is formed, a piezoelectric element that is formed on one surface side of the flow channel formation substrate, and a nozzle plate having a nozzle formation surface in which an opening of a nozzle, which is in communication with the pressure generation chamber, is formed. Further, dots are formed on a recording medium by discharging liquid droplets from the nozzle formation surface as a result of bringing about a pressure change in the liquid inside the pressure generation chamber by driving the piezoelectric element. However, a portion of the liquid droplets that are discharged from the nozzle formation surface does not land on the recording medium, and instead stains the nozzle formation surface as a result of turning into ink mist and becoming attached to the nozzle formation surface.
For example, in the ink jet type printer that is disclosed in JP-A-2013-111767, the durability of a nozzle plate is improved by covering a nozzle formation surface (an ejection surface) and a stepped portion of the outer periphery of the nozzle plate with a liquid-repellent film (water-repellent film). Furthermore, the ink jet type printer includes a member (a blade) that cleans by wiping the nozzle formation surface.
However, in the ink jet type printer that is disclosed in JP-A-2013-111767, when the cleaning of a stain (ink mist), which is attached to the nozzle formation surface, is repeated, there is a concern that the liquid-repellent film will deteriorate. To explain in more detail, there is a concern that the liquid-repellent film will be worn away mechanically as a result of cleaning the stain, which is attached to the nozzle formation surface, by wiping and that mechanical damage to the liquid-repellent film will occur as a result, a concern that the liquid-repellent film will be worn away chemically as a result of the stain, which is attached to the nozzle formation surface, and that chemical damage to the liquid-repellent film will occur as a result, and the like. When the liquid-repellent film deteriorates as a result of such mechanical damage or such chemical damage, a liquid droplet discharging performance of the liquid discharging head changes, and therefore, the appearance quality (image quality) of an image that is recorded on a recording medium by the liquid discharging head changes. Accordingly, it is difficult for the liquid discharging apparatus to be activated stably over a long period of time, and therefore, there is a concern that the durability of the liquid discharging apparatus will become impaired.